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Saturday, June 14, 2014

Educator comfort to student learning ratio

So, my career in education is fast approaching a decade... ten full years as an educator! Wow does the time fly...

Just recently I've seemed to have an epiphany, and this epiphany is born out of transition, adaptation, change, and transformation.

I've definitely had moments of discomfort and uncertainty in my education career. I've been asked to do things I wasn't ready for or prepared to do. I've been put in positions that have pushed my boundaries and have pushed my levels of knowledge and expertise. I've experienced countless nights wondering about how new changes or new ideas will turn out and how they will be perceived by others.

I'm almost gotten comfortable with being uncomfortable...

Here's the epiphany... the level of comfort educators experience is directly linked to the learning experiences and learning opportunities that become available for students.

In other words, if you are constantly comfortable and constantly doing what you have always done, then learning experiences and learning opportunities for students will be minimal.

Conversely, if you are constantly pushing yourself and charging toward the unknown and acknowledging that discomfort is a part of being relevant, you will present rich learning opportunities and experiences to your students.

Now, I don't have any 'data' or quantitative analysis to support this claim, but I think I may be on to something here.

Challenge yourself to seek out what you are uncomfortable doing. Challenge yourself to do what you've never done before. Challenge yourself to do what others say can't be done. Embrace discomfort and the unknown because it's in the world of the unknown that great things become possible for students.

Agora: Collaborative Classroom

Disclaimer

"Life of an Educator" is the personal blog of Justin Tarte. Here I will share my thoughts on education in an effort to improve schools by helping Educators to reflect upon their current practices and beliefs. The opinions expressed here represent my own and may or may not represent those of my current employer.